Former Gov. Bill Owens, left, with his daughter, event co-chair Monica Owens, and VOA's director of development, Michael James. (David Zalubowski, Special to The Denver Post)

Red Wine & Seafood has had many themes in its 16 years, and this year co-chairs Monica Owens and Quinn Washington transported guests to New Orleans for a rollicking interpretation of Mardi Gras.

There were beads, a Dixieland jazz band and a grand buffet that featured everything from pan-fried oysters to crawfish etouffee. The 290 guests also could bid in a silent auction, enjoy a variety of red wines and meet the four grand marshalls — Sharon Magness Blake, Pat Cortez, Jean Galloway and Susan Kiely.

Owens said the goal was to raise at least $30,000 for Brandon Center and Theodora House, shelters operated by Volunteers of America for battered or homeless women and their children.

Allison Klein, left, Jennifer Daurio and Monica Owens organized the party held at Shanahan's. (Joanne Davidson, The Denver Post)

With the main event a little over a month away, the Young Professionals of Western Fantasy rallied the troops at Shanahan’s Monday evening and ended up selling about a dozen more tickets for this Oct. 23 benefit starring Wynonna Judd.

The biggest score was an entire table purchased by Melissa Meyer; Shane Nowak bought a pair of tickets and others promised they’d come through after their next payday. “Our tickets are $150, which is half of what a regular adult ticket costs,” explained Monica Owens. “But for us it’s a lot of money, especially if we are ones who go to a lot of benefits. So we take credit cards and offer a payment plan, whatever it takes to make buying a bit easier.”

Young Professional ticket-buyers will also receive admission to an after-party at the Grizzly Rose.

Owens, whose dad, former Gov. Bill Owens, dropped by for a few minutes to see how things were going, has been involved with Western Fantasy for the past four years, coming aboard when her mother, Frances Owens, chaired it. Monica organized the Shanahan’s get-together with Allison Klein and Jennifer Daurio.

Western Fantasy is a benefit for Volunteers of America and is held at the National Western Events Center. This year’s headliner is Wynonna Judd; emcees will be Angie Austin and Chris Parente from Channel 2. On Wednesday night, Western Fantasy chairs Gayle and Ed Novak will welcome patron-level supporters at a cocktail party held at Neiman Marcus Cherry Creek.

At Shanahan’s, managing partner Marc Steron and Devonne Marcove, the sales and marketing director, treated the 100 guests to sliders, shrimp, prime rib and parmesan-dusted French fries. Marcove, formerly director of the Fifth Avenue Club at Saks, is a blushing bride, having recently married David Nations.

I like to look at things from a positive angle, so for public consumption I’ll just say it’s wonderful that there are enough big-hearted people in Denver to support the four major charitable fundraisers scheduled for June 26: Janet’s Camp, the National Repertory Orchestra Summer Gala, the Giddy-Up Gala starring Lee Ann Womack and the presentation of the Central City Opera Flower Girls.

Privately, I’m sorry there’s not a central source for registering dates so that “traffic jams” such as this can be avoided.

Or not.

Because when there was an official calendar, few organizations utilized it, and the reasons they didn’t ranged from legit (since it was published only two times a year, many of the listings were obsolete by the time the calendars were mailed) to something bordering on paranoia. (If we announce our speaker/entertainer/theme six months or a year in advance, another group will steal it and beat us to the punch).

Bottom line: I don’t think a printed calendar will fly any better today than it did several years ago. Nor do I think that anyone has the time, or inclination, to put in the hours required to get one up and running. Even online. And, the same groups that were reluctant to participate before probably haven’t changed their minds.

Study after study has shown that when it comes to charitable fundraisers, Denver has more per capita than any comparably sized city in the nation. Joanne Davidson has been covering them for The Denver Post since 1985, coming here from her native California where she'd spent the previous seven years as San Francisco bureau chief for U.S. News & World Report magazine.